NIT 2020: Updated Format, Latest Bracketology Predictions and Insight

Inevitably, there are going to be some good teams left out of the NCAA tournament.

With 68 spots available for March Madness, some schools will surely feel they were snubbed when the bracket is released Sunday night. But instead of having no games left this season, 32 of those teams will head to the National Invitation Tournament instead.

Teams that won their regular-season conference championship but are left out of the NCAA tournament will be automatically invited to the NIT. The rest of the field will be filled out with the best teams left out of March Madness.

Like the NCAA tournament, the NIT is set to be played without fans in attendance due to concerns over the coronavirus.

The College Basketball Invitational cancelled its tournament and the NBA suspended its season, so it's unclear if more news could come regarding the NIT.

For now, the NIT is on and scheduled to begin Tuesday. Here's everything you need to know about this year's event.

First round at higher seed's campus

Second round at higher seed's campus

Quarterfinals at higher seed's campus

Semifinals at Madison Square Garden

Championship at Madison Square Garden

Latest NIT Projections

As is often the case, there are going to be some strong mid-major teams that end up in the NIT.

This season, Northern Iowa and Radford will likely be two of the schools that receive automatic invitations to the tournament after each gets left out of March Madness.

Northern Iowa was the No. 1 seed in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament, but the Panthers lost their first matchup, falling to Drake in the quarterfinals. And although they're 25-6, they don't have a strong enough resume to likely warrant inclusion in the NCAA tournament.

ESPN.com's Joe Lunardi has Northern Iowa among the first eight teams out of March Madness in his latest bracketology update.

Radford needed to win the Big South tournament in order to be included in March Madness, but it fell short when it lost to Hampton in the semifinals of the conference tournament. The Big South doesn't have enough strong teams for two schools to reach the NCAA tourney, so expect to see the Highlanders in the NIT.

There are also going to be some teams from stronger conferences in the NIT as well.

Lunardi has Xavier and Wichita State among his first four teams out, then lists Mississippi State and Purdue among his "next four out" category. All of those schools are in top conferences but likely have too many losses to reach the NCAA tournament, barring a surprise run in their conference tourneys.

Jerry Palm of CBSSports.com has Texas, Texas Tech and NC State among his first four teams out of the NCAA tournament, so those three Power Five schools could also be potential NIT teams if that projection comes true.

It will be easier to project the NIT bracket once the NCAA tournament field is set, as it will be clear which bubble teams didn't make the cut and were left out by the selection committee.